It's a popular misconception that the wine industry suffers from collective metathesiophobia. Not so: stakeholders in several major regions are embracing the digital revolution. Armed with data tracking technology, vintners are increasingly intent on watching you.
The aim is simple and benign: sell more Merlot to visitors during their trip – and after they depart. With the oenotourism sector booming – and overall wine consumption paradoxically declining in mature markets – producers need every advantage they can muster. Or, as one owner put it: "On-site sales are good; continuing revenue once Mr and Mrs Smith are back home is even better." Indeed, the importance of detailed information concerning people's habits and preferences has never been more vital. It can mean the difference between success and a red letter day.
"We compile visitor data from a variety of sources, including commissioning our own visitor profile and economic report every other year, Smith Travel Research, Cvent, and via our owned channels like our website and social media," says Linsey Gallagher, president and CEO of Visit Napa Valley. "We are also in the process of implementing data provider Zartico. We analyze data from all of these sources to provide insights to our partners, which include lodging properties, wineries, restaurants, and experience partners in Napa Valley."
The potential benefits to Napa wineries are numerous. For one thing, a more detailed understanding of visitor attributes will enable brands to personalize their direct-to-consumer channel, building loyalty by targeting specific preferences via email communication. "Our partners can take that information and better calibrate their offerings to meet the interests of those visitors, should they so choose," explains Gallagher.
"For example, we created a blog post about 50 wineries offering tastings under $50. It quickly became one of the most highly trafficked pages on our website, and the list has now grown to over 70 wineries. When partners heard how popular the post was, they strove to highlight the offerings they created to meet the desires of that particular visitor."
Viva the iPhone
Some of the data collection tools used by Visit Napa Valley have admittedly been around for some time now. Yet it is the ubiquitous smartphone, another well-established piece of tech, that is revolutionizing how wineries obtain customer insights. In March, South Africa's promotional body VinPro announced it was collaborating with Purple Presence Analytics to collect and collate visitor data: the process begins with counting the number of mobile devices in range of a Wi-Fi router. All that is required is for Millennials to never put their phones down for more than 2 seconds.
To read full article, click HERE.